#FEARLESS365 | ISAIAH 10:24

#FEARLESS365 is a yearlong study of God’s commandment to us to live without fear. For 365 days, we will focus on one scripture and volunteers from all over the world will share their personal thoughts and what God has shared with them on the specific verse. For more info… go here.

Therefore this is what the Lord, the LORD Almighty, says: “My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians, who beat you with a rod and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did.

Isaiah 10:24

Isaiah 10:24 shows God telling His people to not be afraid of the Assyrians. Because I know something about ancient history, I know that He is referring to the Assyrians because the Assyrians came in and conquered the Jewish people. The Assyrians, being the conquerors that they were, came in and basically forced the Jews to adapt to the Assyrian ways, or die. I imagine it wasn’t that different to what the Native Americans faced as America slowly built up over time, or how the Christian population feels now in ISIS prone territories. One can imagine how scary a time this would’ve been for the Jewish people. And yet here is their God, telling them through the prophet Isaiah, ‘Do not be afraid’? But I also know what else Isaiah told God’s people, such as the prophecy that one day a child would be born to a virgin. I also know that Isaiah’s lips and words were blessed by God; the very book of Isaiah starts out describing this. So if Isaiah told His people, DO NOT BE AFRAID – people needed to listen. So how can these words apply to me, or to us, today?

I don’t claim to know or understand the Word of God completely, but I believe He has given me the ability to interpret His words to apply to my life in ways that have been blessings; for both myself and my friends and family. In this verse, as well as the many others where God tells us not to be afraid, I believe God is letting Isaiah simply use the Assyrians as the best example of something great to fear back in those times. I think the Assyrians can represent any of our greatest fears we have as Christians today. I work in law enforcement. I work as a servant to protect others, yet I witness in our society every day how law enforcement officers themselves are persecuted for simply existing in the profession. I am a Christian, and yet I see my very own country, the United States of America, a country that has very much been known in its 200+ year tenure to traditionally be a Christian nation – and Christians are scorned for their outspoken beliefs in morality, in right and wrong, and in what we believe God tells us in black and white. I am a white man, and yet the international media would have the world think that I am some kind of natural villain because of the color of skin I was born into. The world around us would have everyone believe that because I am a southern white man, I have it in for all blacks, all Hispanics, and all women. Yet nothing could be further from the truth. On top of these mild forms of persecution, Christians in countries controlled by Sharia Law, or communist countries like China, or dare I say, North Korea, face danger to their lives every day.

Yet God tells His people to not be afraid. And here’s one really cool part; right after God tells His people these words through Isaiah, he continued with “Very soon my anger against you will end
and my wrath will be directed to their destruction.” So God may test us…he may let evil forces surround us even, and perhaps cause suffering and persecution to test our faith. But if we are who we claim to be as Christians, then our faith can hold out for the second part of what He said. His wrath will be turned on those that we fear. And He will make them meet their destruction. Sounds harsh, doesn’t it? Yet God’s words have been around for eons now. I choose to follow His teachings because like the good book says, He is coming back. And you’re either with Him, or you’re against Him. But it’s not quite to doomsday sounding, simply because, God offers what every good father offers their children…His open arms. If a father scolds his child, that child can either choose to resent the father for the rest of its life, or they can embrace the father when he wants to show his love. God is our good Father. We as humans are sinful in nature; just see how early in life we naturally cling to words like ‘mine’, and ‘me’, and ‘I’. Yet what if ‘WE’ come together as a people for God, and run to His eternal arms. How awesome is that imagery. I choose to go to my job as a police officer every day, and though there are plenty of reasons to be afraid, I will choose NOT to be afraid. I know God is watching, and He knows where I stand. What about you?

Jason E. Fort is a Police Officer who lives in Easley, South Carolina, United States. One interesting fact about you: He has self-published four Christian Fiction novels, with the fifth one soon to be out. He has also sung tenor in the tallest cathedrals in Europe, and he was a cheerleader in college.